page_title: Pterodactylus
section_title: Life history
hierarchical_section_title: Pterodactylus / Paleobiology / Life history
caption_attribution_description: Italiano: Cast of the part and counterpart of the holotype specimen of Pterodactylus spectabilis (now considered juvenile P. antiquus), TM 10341, Museo di Storia Naturale di Verona
context_page_description: Pterodactylus is an extinct genus of euctenochasmatian pterodactyloid pterosaur, whose members are commonly known as pterodactyls. It is thought to contain only a single species, Pterodactylus antiquus, which was initially described as Ornithocephalus antiquus, but the generic name Pterodactylus had been considered the correct term for the animal, and therefore P. antiquus was designated as the type species of Pterodactylus, and O. antiquus as an obsolete synonym of the former. Pterodactylus is also the first pterosaur genus to be named and identified as a flying reptile.
  Fossil remains of Pterodactylus have primarily been found in the Solnhofen limestone of Bavaria, Germany, which dates back to the Late Jurassic period, about 150.8 to 148.5 million years ago. More fragmentary remains of Pterodactylus have tentatively been identified from elsewhere in Europe, as well as in Africa.
  Many studies conclude that Pterodactylus was a carnivore that probably preyed upon fish as well as other small animals. Like all pterosaurs, Pterodactylus had wings formed by a skin and muscle membrane stretching from its elongated fourth finger to its hind limbs.
context_section_description: Like other pterosaurs (most notably Rhamphorhynchus), Pterodactylus specimens can vary considerably based on age or level of maturity. Both the proportions of the limb bones, size and shape of the skull, and size and number of teeth changed as the animals grew. Historically, this has led to various growth stages (including growth stages of related pterosaurs) being mistaken for new species of Pterodactylus. Several detailed studies using various methods to measure growth curves among known specimens have suggested that there is actually only one valid species of Pterodactylus, P. antiquus.
  The youngest immature specimens of Pterodactylus antiquus (alternately interpreted as young specimens of the distinct species P. kochi) have a small number of teeth, as few as 15 in some, and the teeth have a relatively broad base. The teeth of other P. antiquus specimens are both narrower and more numerous (up to 90 teeth are present in several specimens).
  Pterodactylus specimens can be divided into two distinct year classes. In the first year class, the skulls are only 15 to 45 millimeters (0.59 to 1.77 in) in length. The second year class is characterized by skulls of around 55 to 95 millimeters (2.2 to 3.7 in) long, but are still immature however. These first two size groups were once classified as juveniles and adults of the species P. kochi, until further study showed that even the supposed "adults" were immature, and possibly belong to a distinct genus. A third year class is represented by specimens of the "traditional" P. antiquus, as well as a few isolated, large specimens once assigned to P. kochi that overlap P. antiquus in size. However, all specimens in this third year class also show sign of immaturity. Fully mature Pterodactylus specimens remain unknown, or may have been mistakenly classified as a different genus.
caption: Holotype specimen of the species P. spectabilis, now considered a juvenile specimen of P. antiquus
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